Detective Shinigami
by WhatBoredomWills
Summary: Light's persistent killings as "Kira" has tipped the balance between Hollows and spirits in the Human World. And with L's death, what's stopping him and the Hollows? It's now up to Captain Kuchiki to approach L (now in Soul Society) and convince him to join forces with them as a Shinigami. But will L accept the offer? Shinigami L, Arrancar Light/Misa (My summary skills sucks now!)
1. 1: Opportunistic Encounter

**A/N:** _I do not own Bleach. Nor do I own Death Note. I only own the thoughts and energy, the idea and plot/original character works of this fanfiction._

* * *

**Detective Shinigami**

One  
_Opportunistic Encounter  
_  
All was silent and calm in the dorms and confines of the Seireitei Communications Office. It was just half past ten, which was way beyond their overtime hours, and his last colleague had just left about an hour before. Even though the layout and editing for the next issue was ready to be printed, an anxious hearted Hisagi Shuhei slammed his head onto the table. He took in a deep breath, taking in the acrid scent of dry papers and blotched ink, as he sighed in relief and felt his tensed muscles eased. _I worked hard for that one, even if I didn't write anything!_ He smilingly thought as he pulled his head from the hard surface; his coal black hair shuffled against each strand at the sudden movement. _It should sell more copies than the one before since…_ He looked back up and drew his grey eyes at the door leading to the hallway. Just along that hallway towards the end was a large, off-limits chamber that had an immensely memorable library now home to one erratic and introvert shinigami cum writer.

_She hasn't been out for years_, he thought as he stared back at his editor's copy of the Seireitei Communications magazine and flipped it open to page fifteen, skipping all the now mundane articles in between. The light of the office beamed across his pale skin and face, where it gave a sudden shine to his pale blue tattoo running from his left cheek to his nose and a grim reminder of the existence of a scar on his right cheek. His eyes trailed from top to the bottom of about three pages worth of an interesting article as always; it was an article regarding the issue of an increased level of Hollow appearances in the Human World and the writer suspected that a supernatural, zealous killer dubbed "Kira" was behind it.

He smiled silently to himself as he shut it close, _As expected of Tachibana! She may not be around us all the time, but whenever she writes a story, it's all worth the wait. To capture shinigami's attention on the Human World like this… she's so daring!_ A yawn suddenly escaped from his dry lips, making him realize that he was the only one in the office. _I wonder if the next generation has more guts than her…_

"I should really get going," he called out as he stood from his chair and began walking away from his desk. He switched off the lights in the office and headed out into the same hallway that he eyed earlier. As he shut the door behind him, he startled to catch the glimpse of a silhouette shifting in the dark just across the path before him. He gulped, sensing the familiar reiatsu resonating from it.

"It's been a while, hasn't it, Hisagi?" A gentle but patronizing voice vibrated through the space between them; the shadow turned and the figure took a step forward, but revealing nothing more than its hakama. "You're still the same as I last saw you."

"T-Tachibana? Is that really you?"

The figure laughed a little and took another step forward; Hisagi's eyes widened and his lips let out a gasp that was neither pleased nor horrified. "I look no different, I'm sure," it spoke again but his reaction was maintained. "But judging from your reaction, I could tell that five years of being locked up sure surprises people."

"You're going out this late?"

The figure returned a step behind and shifted slightly as if nodding. "Ah," she responded darkly, "I sense a terrible thing brewing in the Human World."

"There's always something terrible brewing in the Human World. Why do you care so much about it?"

"Because we were all humans once. Or would you rather I begin my lecture on that _all humans are souls and when we die, we revert to becoming merely souls_? You know it better than do… that what we establish and keep as we are now is the remnants of our past as humans. My years of research had certainly proven that… or are you undermining my discovery?"

"It's not like that!" Hisagi protested. "It's just that… it's been so long since I last saw you and for you to walk out only to enter the Human World and make observations, I just don't understand!"

"So you've been reading, but never been understanding, huh?"

Hisagi bit his lips as he hissed, "What's that supposed to mean? Don't you think that what you're doing is beyond the shinigami duties entitled to you?"

"What I do benefits shinigamis and Soul Society in general," the figure moved to bask entirely in the shadows. "Even if it means I study humans. Hisagi, if you don't understand, I cannot force you. But you can't force me to stay either…"

"Tachibana! Even if you're going, let me come with you!"

He could almost see her almond slanted eyes slowly opening up in the dark; it revealed the way her golden brown orbs intensely glared into his, prying him into a sense of confusion and false security. Her reiatsu amplified practically immediately; _She's definitely mad at me, _he noted silently with a gulp_. _Hisagi slowly dragged the soles of his straw sandals backwards, _I can't let her go, but I can't make her stay either_… _Damn it!_

"I shouldn't trouble you… after all, you know I always work alone," she finally said it with a tinge of annoyance. "You know I'm better off alone anyway."

"But Tachibana! You cannot go with supervision or schedule! It's not your turn on the roster!"

"I'll take my chances."

"Tachibana!"

By the time he gave chase into the darkness, he was met with blows of golden sands; _This is_… _Masayume's clones. That Tachibana_… _She purposely set up a clone while making her way out. Of course! She must've known I was here all the time. But now, w__hat should I do?_

* * *

"Urahara-san," she stood by the wooden sliding door of a rather dodgy shop and waited for a reply. She knew her voice was loud enough to be heard, but still subtle enough not to wake any dogs out there.

After for about a minute, the door was finally opened. A rather unkempt-looking man with a black and white striped hat and shoulder-length blonde hair with split ends at the back welcomed her; he had a strange smile on his face - it was either guilty or surprised. He knew who it was immediately as there could only be one person to come at his door after business hours, even though the figure was shaded from the lights. _It's strange, _he thought as he took off his hat and nodded slightly at her, _she always comes after midnight_… _What brought her here so early? _She took a step inside and waited as he shut the door behind him; there was no light in his shop except for the one in the stairway just behind the cashier. So it was a little difficult for him to see her.

He scratched his neck and yawned lazily as he turned to her. "Tachibana," he said smilingly, "Isn't it a bit too early for you to go hunting around?"

"Time waits for no man, Urahara-san… You should know that more than I do!"

"Well, if it's about "Kira", the newspaper's over there and your notes are still there as you've left them - I didn't take a peek!" he cheerily pointed towards the shop's counter where a box of stacked papers stood next to the cashier machine. "Looks like he's still killing off people… In fact, I should tell you, there was a live event some time ago. Some high ranking corporate figure named Higuchi something died during capture."

"On live TV?"

"Yeah, it was kind of surprising. I have to say there was something strange going on at the time."

"How's that?"

"The men who apprehended him before he died on live news started shouting _shinigami_ when they touched his notebook."

"Could it be? Is it the Body Reapers?"

"Body Reapers? Well, of course! Tachibana-chan does a lot of reading for what she's writing!" Urahara laughed as he leaned against the wall, "I guess I could say, you're absolutely right! You've been having theories that this "Kira" must have a Body Reaper's notebook judging from the way he's killed people! You've even suspected a Body Reaper himself, but the thing is, Body Reapers don't choose who they kill - they just do. After all, the way "Kira" has been killing people shows interest in _cleaning up the world's mess_ and that was a bit human of him, as you put it."

The young woman walked further up to the cashier with a faint smile, one he wasn't able to see properly; but as she approached closer, the light hit her face and revealed her pearly ivory skin. She had dark brown eyes and has overgrown pixie haircut angled slightly on one side of her face - very ordinary and tidy-looking. On her earlobes were medium-sized white pearl earrings, gleaming silver in colour as the lighting shifted. _She still hasn't changed, _he thought as he smiled to himself, _I hear she's never been out of her room in Seireitei for five years_… _I bet they're wondering if she's ever sneaked out at all! Little did they know!_

"That's true," the woman replied as she looked over the box, "I did suspect the Body Reapers. To kill with name and face sounded just about right and then there's that ability to see names to a face… But I didn't think they would be so kind as to show off their notebook. There must more to the story than meets the eye and both the Spirit King and the Reaper's King should pay attention to this. Both realms are on the verge of decomposition. But, more to the matter at hand… that L guy is interesting. He's been checking up all my list of theories and assumptions. He's the world's best detective indeed!"

"You're not trying to surpass him, are you?"

"The will to surpass overcomes the will to survive in this case… Even if I am a shinigami and he's just a human."

"So what are you going to do now?"

"I'll investigate even more! Urahara-san, I'd like to thank you for all your help and for the newspapers _and _for not looking into my notes. But I have to roam around first before I use one of your Gigai to read the news…"

"Roam around? What are you planning? You sure know how to put a burden on my fatherly shoulders!"

She chuckled slightly at that. "Don't worry. If it's a Hollow, I surely could handle. But a Body Reaper…"

"Hey, now! We're not supposed to confront them. Even if this issue gets out of hand, both Kings will have to have a conference but with _each other! _Stay out of it no matter what!"

"I'm well aware of that… Please, don't worry of me, Urahara-san."

_Several minutes and districts later_

"This reiatsu…" Tachibana was standing atop a sky scrapper, trying to locate the directionality of a dangerous level of spiritual energy; she quickly leaped at hundreds feet in the air from one rooftop to another and before long, she sensed she had arrived at the right building. "Let's hope it's not a Hollow… This storm is not helping it either."

She took note of the frequent lightning and thunder strikes before going through the concrete floor with her intangible body. Within seconds, she had arrived into a room where a dying old man in a suit lied on top a desk. There were several computer monitors surrounding the desk; they were all flashing the words "all data deletion". _Who is this man? Did the reiatsu come from him? No, that's impossible! The reiatsu earlier just left! I must hurry! But - _As she waited for him to breathe his last, his soul came rushing out of his body, but instead of automatic detachment, his Chain of Fate was still attached to the floor. _He's died before his time!_ _More importantly, an occupational hazard_…_ He died while working for something and now has unfinished business. _

"Please calm down," she muttered, to which the old man, now a soul, responded with a startle.

"W-who are you? What's happened to me?"

"I am a _shinigami," _she paused and watched his eyes widened at the word, _Could it be? He's met with a Body Reaper before?_ "But not the one you think."

"What do you - "

_There it is again! _She quickly spun around and sensing that the reiatsu had returned into the building, just on a different floor; _There's no time! I don't care what's the reason, but - _She rushed towards the old man's soul and took out her zanpakuto. With the back of the hilt, she hit the man on his head and yelled, "There's no time to explain!"

The man quickly transformed into a ball of light and disappeared. At this sight, she quickly turned behind her and walked through the walls and leaped through more concrete floors and beams before she got into a dark room filled with whirring motors of internal servers. There, she jumped to see a pale white and skeletal being; it had eyes amber in colour, similar to a python, and strange locks of pastel purple hair, just standing there with a pen scribbling into a notebook. _That's it! A Body Reaper!_

"Stop whatever it is you're doing!"

The Body Reaper paused. "I'm sorry," it finally said; the notebook and pen fell on the floor, "I don't know what you're doing here but I cannot stop. I've written a name…"

"I'm here to find you, of course! And you've written a name? Have you any involvement with Kira?"

"No. But if you'd like to see L, you have thirty-nine seconds until his death."

"L? As in L, the world's best detective? What good is that?"

"I had to do it… In order to protect someone I cared for. Thirty-five seconds."

"Where is L? Tell me where he is!"

"Why do you care? Soul Reapers like you should stay out of this. Thirty seconds."

The young woman took out her sword and shouted, _"Madoromu, Masayume (Drowse, Masayume)!"_

In an instant, her sword shifted into that of pole with a curved blade at the end, similar to a glaive. _Exactly twenty-seven seconds! _She threw it at the Body Reaper and the sturdy pole suddenly shifted into chains and wrapped itself around its skeletal body; she tightened it before the chains disbursed into the Body Reaper in the form of golden sands. _Twenty-three! _She watched as the Body Reaper's eyes slowly shut and before long, sands returned towards the hilt of her sword and slowly revert to its original form. _L is the next room? So is Kira? Thank you, Masayume._

"Before you go," the Body Reaper suddenly spoke; its body was slowly turning to dust as Tachibana turned around. "Are you going to perform the _konso _on L?"

"That would depend, wouldn't you say?"

"I see… Well then, good luck."

By the time it dissipated into merely ash, the young shinigami leaped into the wall and found the next room as dark as the previous ones. She observed the room as around six middle-aged men in suits surround two familiar young men: one was sitting on a swivel chair in an odd manner and another had tidy strawberry blonde hair. The first one had strange, spiky raven hair brushed to one side of his head and sat with his knees curling to his chest; his eyes were large and dark in color with rings and shadows around them. He was staring up intently at the computer monitors just before him, which said the same thing from the other room she saw earlier. _So the old man_… _was he part of the team? _The other young man was standing quietly beside him. _These two are the same ones that I saw at To-Oh University… __I wonder if that strange looking fella is really L because if he is, then "Kira" is…_

"The unexpected? What do you mean? Is Watari dead?" said one of suited men.

The strange young man titled his head, "Where is the shinigami?"

_Shinigami? _She repeated as she continued to watch them. _So they've seen the Body Reaper as well!_ The older men looked about and yelled in frustration to realize that it was gone.

"Everyone!" The strange haired young man exclaimed urgently, "The Shinigami - "

_He's dying! __It's been forty-seconds exactly right!_ There's no doubt about it! He really must be L! She noted as the scene began to unravel before her. L suddenly lost control over his body and fell off from the chair; it caught the other men in a strange and unpleasant surprise. But the strawberry blonde youth jumped in and grabbed hold of him. As she approached them, she watched as him smirk triumphantly at the dying one. _Could it be? Why is he smirking at his friend's death? __So this other person, he is_…

The look of distress and shock on the young man's face broke her heart; she gasped as she took a step back, feeling uncomfortable at what she had just witnessed. As the renowned detective drew his last breath and slowly shut his eyes, his soul burst out of his body just a few seconds later; he was different from the old man earlier as he was free from his body, his Chain of Fate unattached to anything. It pained her even more to see that it was nearly completely broken. Even as she braved herself to look at his corpse, he had a relaxed expression so serene and beautiful.

It took a while for him to move about, even though he saw himself as dead and watching as the men tried to grasp the situation. _Should I tell him? _Tachibana gripped tightly around the hilt of her sword, _I should wait for a reaction. If I perform the konso now, I - _L suddenly took up a deep breath and sighed, feeling no effect to his now intangible body. He had no comprehension of what just happened or why he still has consciousness even in death. As he looked at his transparent body, Tachibana took a step forward. _Masayume, I'm counting on you! _

L shot a look at her, but by that time, her appearance was obscured by the persistent darkness; "Who are you?"

"I am a shinigami."

"If that's so, why don't you look like one?"

_Of course, _she bit her lip, _he's a detective so he's not idiot! For one so smart, he'd need an explanation! _"What you've seen previously is also a shinigami, but it is better known as a Body Reaper… The reason being is because it has the duty to reap body. That is, it cuts life from the body. I am a Soul Reaper and I reap souls."

"Then you mean to say that I am a soul?"

"Yes."

"And you are going to reap me?"

"Yes. Souls don't belong here, you see. Souls belong else where and it is my lifelong duty to guide you there."

L narrowed his eyes as an old man with a thick mustache came over to his lifeless body and volunteered to send him to the hospital; he suddenly nodded as he turned to Tachibana again, "Very well. But before that, would you please tell me more about where do souls belong?"

"There's a place called Soul Society. Once I perform the Soul Burial - "

"A Soul Burial?"

_It's so complicated! But I can't force him to go_… _or else I'll be fined!_ _I have to give a brief explanation! Where's Rukia-san when you need her? _"A soul is the original form of humans," she began after taking in a deep breath, "When the human body is perfected or born, the soul takes over it to live here - in the Human World. But when the human body expires, the soul returns to its original form in order to return home - to Soul Society, where it lives again. When the soul dies in Soul Society, it is replaced and return again to become humans. Over and over, this cycle is repeated and new souls are born every other day or month, year or even century. Yet the soul is not allowed to exist in the human realm as a human is not allowed to exist in Soul Society."

"So this Soul Burial is a burial for the soul in order to return there?"

"Yes. As a Body Reaper take the life of humans by separating the bond of the soul and its body thereby beginning the Body Burial, so when a soul is forced out of its body in death, there need be a Soul Burial as a… _transport _so to speak."

"I see. I think I understand the main concept."

Tachibana silently sighed, _Great! Now I can - _

"But even so," L suddenly cupped his chin as he looked straight at her, "I have unfinished business here. I'm sorry, but you're going to have to perform the Soul Burial another time."

_It's too long an explanation if I tell him about the Chain of Fate and types of souls that roamed the earth after death! _Tachibana took out her sword, much to the surprise of the young detective. "I've no choice then," she muttered darkly, "Drowse, Masayume!"

* * *

It was three in the morning and Urahara was still awake; he had been waiting at the counter for about four hours now and still, there was no sign of her. _That's strange, _he thought as he looked back to the wall clock to double check, _Where's she gone? _He heard some thuds from the other room and waited as several footsteps soon followed; a young girl in pajamas with deep purple hair tied to a ponytail and parted in the middle of her face greeted him with surprise.

"Oh, dear!" Urahara exclaimed quietly and scratched his head rather nervously, "Did I wake you now, Ururu-chan?"

She didn't say anything at first; she held out her hand and pointed at the television just behind the cashier. As she switched it on, Urahara watch from his chair as the news broadcasted that "John Doe dies of heart attack".

"Hm? John Doe?" Urahara commented plainly. "The guy doesn't even have an ID on him - that's funny! Why are you showing me this, Ururu-chan?"

"That's L."

He jumped from his seat and quickly turned to the child with surprise on his face. "What do you mean? How do you know that?"

"If you see," Tsumiya Ururu, the young girl with the strange hair and distinct blush on her cheeks, walked up to the counter and fumbled through the newspapers before taking out a notebook, "Tachibana-san has - "

"Gah! Don't look at that!"

"She doesn't mind."

"Ah! But that's against my policy!"

"If you see here," Tsumiya ignored his antics and opened the notebook up anyway; she flipped open one page that revealed a sketch of two young men, "This guy with the dark hair is L and the other is Yagami Light. Light is under suspicion of being "Kira" so L has to come close to the guy to see if his theory is right. This was drawn a long time ago, I'm not sure if Tachibana-san remembers. After all, she was busy researching on Body Reapers back in Soul Society - she has told me this."

"But how does Tachibana know that that guy is L?"

"He's told Light that at the university."

Urahara nodded his head, "Well, that could be true. But that doesn't explain how John Doe is L and how you would know that!"

"For one thing," said Tsumiya as she flipped the notebook again, "All the murders by "Kira" has first started of as heart attacks - just like that of a Body Reaper's notebook. Plus, on her behalf, I have met the guy."

"What!?"

"I did it behind her back… so that I could surprise her and help her sense if he would've died."

"So does Tachibana know that he's dead? No, more importantly, does she have anything to do with it?"

* * *

**A/N:  
**_Hi. This is my first Bleach fanfiction. This is also my first Death Note fanfiction. I was so upset that L died that I had to write the wrong (pun seriously intended) :P _

_Please enjoy and relax and review haha!_

_Edited: 25/5/13 - I realized that L was never announced dead. Lolz_


	2. 2: Grand Misfortune

**Detective Shinigami**

Two  
_Grand Misfortune_

"WHAT?!"

Shuhei jumped at the sound of Rangiku's high pitched voice; even if he's always been around her, her voice still needed some getting used to. He stumbled over on the couch of the Tenth Division's Captain Hitsugaya's office and quickly recovered as the Captain himself stepped in; he didn't mind the Vice Captain of the Ninth Division being here, but he would appreciate his lieutenant to give him the heads up.

"What is with you, Matsumoto? A lady shouldn't scream around like that - it's annoying!" He commented with a pout as he made his way to his table, which was situated behind the couch that Shuhei was sitting on. "And do you have any business here, Hisagi?"

No matter how many times Shuhei looked at those two, they were always the same invariable contrast of one another; Captain Hitsugaya, with his cool aquamarine eyes and silver spiky hair, exuded an air of effulgence and magnificence whereas Matsumoto Rangiku - his lieutenant and close drinking buddies of Shuhei - exuded the air of chaos and flimsy carelessness, especially with her big orange hair and striking blue eyes (not to mention her voluptuous features and assets).

"U-um, I was uh - " Shuhei then stammered nervously, but Rangiku quickly saved him though.

"He's here to see me and his business is _not_ finished yet. Also, he's also sent off your copy of the magazine!" she snapped before turning back to Shuhei quickly and said, "Are you sure it was her?"

"Definitely! I could recognize her reiatsu anywhere!"

"How did she look like? Is she okay? Is she still the same?"

Shuhei's eyes narrowed as he looked down to his feet; _Of course she looks fine! She always sneaks off to the human world when no one's around! She gets food if she wants too, but I do think she's lost a bit of weight… I do worry - we all do! Five years of total seclusion and she acts around like nothing's happened! That's just like her, so I guess nothing's changed!_

"Just who are you two talking about?" Captain Hitsugaya jumped in as he flipped open the Seireitei Communications magazine on his table. One of his eyebrows were raised as he looked up.

Rangiku took note of that; she held out her hand and pointed straight at the magazine, "It's just someone from the Ninth Division…"

"There's nothing in here that much interesting except for Tachibana Mei," Hitsugaya responded as his icy turquoise eyes scanning on the magazine; he began to read the said person's article. "Her article, though bold and daring, is always amusing to read. You know, I've experimented on her tips before and I'd say she's pretty accurate…"

"You're in luck!" Shuhei chuckled, "Her latest article is a two-part series! Expect the next one to come out next week's special issue!"

"Her latest one is just as amusing… Who's this "Kira"? And when does she have the time to go out and research on this?"

"Tachibana never goes out of her room when she's writing. As for researching, she does it rather secretly…"

"So the rumour about her locking herself up in her room is true after all?"

"It's true, alright! Until last night…"

"She went out?" Hitsugaya raised his eyebrow again; he finished the last paragraph before looking back up at him. "Doesn't Captain Tosen mind her doing that all the time? I think that's rather rude…"

"Not at all. Didn't you hear? Although she's the Sixth Seat, she somehow always gets on the Captain Commander's good side… he saved from some incident hundred years back in North Rokungai. But she pretty much started the whole trend of investigative journalism at the Ninth Division too. So it's all good for us, anyways… that's why Captain Tosen doesn't mind."

"Is that right? How do you know Tachibana anyway?"

"Well, she's a classmate of mine while I was still in the Academy. Hard working girl, but always never satisfied with hard work."

"More importantly," Rangiku interrupted, cupping her chin with her fingers, "She's been away so long I don't think I remember how she looked!"

Shuhei nodded his head and sighed, "She surprisingly looked about the same as she was last seen… maybe a little smaller!"

"And you would know that?" Snapped Hitsugaya with a quizzical look.

Rangiku took the chance to slap the back of Shuhei's head rather jokingly, bursting into a loud cackle as she did. "Didn't you used to say you had a crush on her?" She stifled a giggle as her Captain shot a glare; "Bet'cha still have her picture!"

"I do not!" Hisagi defended himself, blushing only slightly at the accusation.

"So this Tachibana actually has a face?" Said Hitsugaya, trying to recall her face silently. "She must have a face… but I would know if I'd seen her!"

Shuhei nodded, "Of course! She's not a phantom! Besides, I think you have seen her before!"

"Well, writers do like a sense of mystery and anonymity. And no, I would remember how a person like her would look like!"

"And what kind of a person, is that?" Said Rangiku cheekily this time.

"She'd be an intimidating person, cold and sadistic. Prefers to work alone and work her way out of normality and - "

"Are you sure you're not talking about yourself?"

"Mei's not like that," said Hisagi, startling the two from arguing and having a staring contest. "She's a very mild person and unpredictable too. Her emotions runs wilder than her hand… that is, compared to her writing."

Hitsugaya then looked back at the magazine and added, "You seem to know a lot about her, but why does it strikes as a surprise for you that she comes out last night? I'm assuming it must be very late at night…"

"Yes, very. I lost track of time and stayed after printing hours."

"How long has it been since her last appearance?"

"It's been five years…"

"Five years?" Hitsugaya repeated rather loudly and slammed the magazine on the table in utter surprise. "That's absurd! No one stays hidden for five years in Seireitei! What does Captain Tosen says about this? This is preposterous - I'll talk to him about this!"

Rangiku shook her head and sighed blushingly at his reaction, "You're overreacting just like a child!"

"Shut up, Matsumoto! What about you?"

"What are you talking about? I don't cry and complain!"

"Don't cry and complain?"

Shuhei watched with discomfort as the two began fighting furiously with their words; at the same time, he could hear thundering footsteps coming forward to them. _What's this?_ Shuhei spun around as they got closer and the door was slide opened by another shinigami, a lower ranked one and judging from the insignia from the band around his arm, it was from his own division. The stranger panted heavily before looking straight at him with gladness.

"Vice Captain Hisagi!" he called out desperately, "You must hurry! It's Tachibana-san! She's come out!"

Hitsugaya and Rangiku put aside their argument and listened in; Shuhei responded by rushing quickly towards the said shinigami and followed him out, "R-really? Are you sure? Where is she?"

"She's out? Really, really, out?" Rangiku commented in surprise.

Hitsugaya quickly scoffed at that; "So what? Not like she's actually dead!"

"Oh!" Rangiku exclaimed with joy, "I have to see this! It's been too long!"

"What are you doing? Where are you going?"

"Huh? To see Tachibana, of course!"

"Don't be an idiot, Matsumoto. She's a problem that the Ninth Division has to deal with! We've nothing to do with her!"

She pouted angrily as she returned, "It doesn't matter! Shuhei is a friend of mine just as Mei is… I'll need to check on her. Just take it as if I'm representing the Tenth Division on this!"

"If you're going then," Captain Hitsugaya stood up from his chair and walked ahead of her, much to her surprise. "I'm coming with you!"

* * *

Urahara was standing outside his shop, leaning against the door as he stared emptily at his feet; he seemed to ignore the constant bellows of warm summer air as he stuck to being frozen there. _Tachibana didn't show,_ he bit his thumb as he mused,_ I wonder what's going on? Immediately after she left to investigate, L is announced dead and "Kira" is still alive, roaming around to - I assume - find more criminals to kill and create more Hollows. Did she found out who he is or has she met with L's soul when he dead? Knowing that child, she would probably have gone through the latter and perhaps now has to face punishment in Soul Society? No, there's something more than that!_ Just as he looked up, a single black cat stood in front of him.

"Yoruichi!" he exclaimed gladly, "What news from Soul Society?"

The black cat shook its head vigorously; "Bad! It's very bad!"

"What's wrong?"

"I guess Mei and Mayuri's theory was right after all! The alarming number of Hollows and souls has tipped the balance between these two realms and now the Dangai is affected!"

"Why? What's happened?"

"As of last night, the Dangai has lost control over itself and over thousands of souls are trapped there right now!"

Urahara finally had the grip of the news; "How could that have happened? Souls aren't supposed to travel there - "

"While Tachibana was busy investigating, someone has opened up the Dangai, leading all the souls that was buried last night into it. If Tachibana hasn't been around last night, she wouldn't have known! And now she's trapped there along with all the souls while Gotei Thirteen try to figure something out!"

"Slow down! What do you mean _someone _opened up the Dangai? Is this the work of a third party?"

The cat slowly nodded its head, "For some reason, everything just appeared pre-planned. Although, the Kototsu wasn't on schedule to sweep the Dangai last night, another perpetrator did unleash the gateway and confused the souls traveling from the Human World to Soul Society."

"I see," Urahara crossed his arms in thought and concluded, "Whoever it was, they must've taken advantage of the "Kira" situation!"

"Exactly! But more importantly, Tachibana is stuck there! If we let too much time to pass, the souls could already be dead!"

"And thereby worsening the balance over the reishi and reiryoku of Soul Society."

"_And_ the Human World!" Yoruichi the cat leaped into the shop as Urahara opened the door; "I'm worried, Urahara! What will Gotei Thirteen do?"

Urahara nodded as he shut the door. "They will have to bring out a rescue mission!"

"True! But to do that, they have to also deploy shinigamis in the Human World and work out the number of Hollows here while also accepting the number of thousands of souls there from Dangai!"

As they stood silently in the shop, Tsumiya and Hanakari came down from the upper floor; they were surprised to see Yoruichi already inside, but noticed the stern and dire look on its face. They quickly made their way outside the shop and brought their own ruckus there. _If the souls stay in the Dangai for more than two days,_ Urahara bit his lips as he mused, _That would be around fourty-eight hours in the human world and ninety thousand six hundred hours in the Dangai. That's equivalent to four thousand days and that's ten years! If they delay this, that's how long the soul have grown! But if they leave it up to Central Fourty-Six, it could take more than that! What will Gotei Thirteen do indeed? What about Tachibana's life? If she used up her reiatsu, it will be like suicide and leaving the souls there would be genocide! And what if the Kototsu comes out and sweep all those souls away? It would also worsen the imbalance!_ He watched silently as Yoruichi paced from one end of the room to another; its agitated and anxious expression infected his own - a frown quickly followed on his usually relaxed face.

"I guess Tachibana was out at the wrong time and place!" He inferred.

Yoruichi nodded, "That child always has bad luck! By the way, has she said anything unusual last night? Perhaps about that "Kira" investigation she has been raving about!"

"She hasn't said anything. But I did tell her something."

"And what did you tell her?"

"Well, it was about "Kira". There was a man named Higuchi who died last week on live news broadcast on suspicion of being "Kira". The men who took him in custody at the scene shouted _shinigami_ when they touched his notebook."

"A notebook? A Body Reaper's notebook, maybe?"

Urahara nodded confidently. "Highly likely, yes."

"Perhaps she encountered one last night?"

"Even if she did," Urahara's voice deepened as he lowered his head, "Confrontations between two Reapers aren't allowed. I can only hope that she didn't use her zanpakuto against it… no matter how desperate she was!"

* * *

By the time Shuhei had arrived at the Ninth Division's barracks, a crowd had already gathered at the doors to the editing office. They murmured and whispered eagerly, some even squealed excitedly as they queued in line to meet Tachibana; at the same time, Shuhei pushed them aside and forced his way through. He was Vice Captain after all and he was the boss if Captain Tosen wasn't around. His fellow colleagues gave way without him saying anything and as the crowd unfolded, his grey eyes widened; _This is not Tachibana… this is another - _

One of the crowd suddenly called out to him, "Lieutenant Hisagi!"

"Yes, what is it?" Shuhei responded rather annoyingly.

"Aren't you glad? Tachibana-san has finally come out!"

_They don't have a single clue that that's not her…_ He bit his lips as he turned to the centre of the crowd once more; there stood a young woman about a foot or two shorter than him - petite, from where he stood. She wore a simple smile as he slowly walked over. She had short brown hair with an angled fringe towards her left and pixie-cut hair at the back; her eyes gleamed golden brown as the light hit her pale skin. He also caught sight of a pair of pearl earrings on her ears and it made him smile slightly - those had been there since before she joined the Academy.

"Tachibana," he approached calmly, "What's happened now? What made you come out of hiding?"

She chuckled, "I would just like to hand out the part two of my article in person for once…"

"That's it?"

"Yup, of course!"

"Why all the troub - "

"TACHIBANA!" A loud scream was heard coming from around the back; just as Shuhei turned, an overwhelmingly happy Rangiku leaped out of the crowd and jumped onto the petite woman. "Tachibana! I haven't heard from you for _ssssoooo_ _long!_"

"M-Matsumoto-san!"

"There's so suitable suffixes for Matsumoto," cut in Captain Hitsugaya as he caught from behind Rangiku. He first darted his eyes into the crowd before leading them at Tachibana; they widened in surprise, but then his cold repression resumed. "I believe we haven't met… Captain Hitsugaya - "

"Toshiro?" She finished smilingly, "It is you, isn't it?"

"That's Captain Hitsugaya of the Tenth Division and I don't think we've met."

"You don't remember me? Weren't you the one who said that there was distinction between adults and children… and I said yes, just like tomatoes and chillies!"

Hitsugaya's turquoise eyes widened once more and a slight blush stayed in his cheeks, "Y-you?! You're chillies?!"

"It's adorable to know that you can give nicknames, Captain Hitsugaya-kun! It's been a while, hasn't it?"

"Y-yeah! Back then, I was still the Third Seat!"

"Indeed, look how far you've come! Wow, Captain Hitsugaya!" Tachibana nodded her head as she laughed, "I feel slightly embarrassed that I'm still Sixth Seat! I'm very proud of you!"

Hitsugaya nodded blushingly, "T-thank - "

"Oh, you shouldn't elevate his position, Mei!" Said Rangiku as she rested her elbow on Tachibana's shoulder, "He's still a brat deep inside!"

"Matsumoto!" Hitsugaya snapped back.

Shuhei came out from the crowd and pushed Rangiku aside, "More importantly, if you're out, then you must have something to do! Now tell me, what's going on? Tell me the truth, Mei!"

"Uh-oh," Tachibana pouted, "If Hisagi calls me by my name, he means business."

"Then tell me!"

"The Dangai is in trouble," Tachibana began; her statement was met with gasps and murmurs. "As of last night, it had malfunctioned and about a thousand souls are trapped there. They were all buried last night but their transportation to Soul Society was hindered by the alarming numbers of Hollows in the human world."

"What are you talking about? Does this have anything to do with what you've researched? But we had already dispatched our men to deal with them," Hitsugaya quickly argued.

Tachibana nodded in acknowledgement; "I understand that. But have they reported back to you? The Hollows have recently appeared not only frequently, but they are also a lot stronger. Some men are injured badly last night - they may not have been able to contact you. I had to struggle with dealing with the souls at the same time as dealing with the Hollows that tried to eat them. It seemed that when the souls were buried, something had led them into the Dangai instead of just heading straight to Soul Society.

I don't know what it was, but I know it must have something to do with the alarming numbers of Hollows appearances as well as Body Reapers. Now I don't have time to explain to each and one of the Division's Captain, but I have requested for an emergency meeting. Captain Hitsugaya, I hope you'll forgive me for the lateness of this news, but your presence is very much appreciated."

Of all the people there, Hitsugaya was probably one who knew exactly what she meant about Body Reapers and that she was very much serious; he nodded his head darkly with his eyes as severe as hers.

"You can't just call for a meeting!" Shuhei jumped in, "What about our Captain? You're not allowed to just do things your way!"

Tachibana shook her head; "Of course not!" She scoffed, "I have already told _our_ Captain about this!"

"She's right, Hisagi. She met with me before she came here," said another voice, coming from the end of the room; as the crowd cleared away, Captain Tosen Kaname made his appearance. He was tall, had dark skin and futuristic ultraviolet glasses to cover his eyes with an orange scarf wrapped around his neck and some of his hair at the back. His usual haori flipped against the still air as he marched forward while his dreadlocks fringes waved, sending shivers and gulps down the bystanders' throat.

"Captain," Tachibana bowed slightly as a sweat dropped along her temple, "Again, I apologize for my rudeness!"

"It's alright, Mei. I know for one you're the type of journalist who likes to work alone, but given the right time, your work alone is detrimental to everybody else. Good work on the Hollows and your next issue! Though I can't say that it's good news…"

"Please give one of the editorial copies of the second part to Captain Hitsugaya-kun as an apology."

Hitsugaya quickly blushed; "N-no, please don't trouble yourselves! An apology is enough!"

"Geez, Captain! She's just being nice, don't lose your cool all the sudden!" Pouted Rangiku as she giggled over his shoulder.

"Matsumoto!"

Just as Rangiku was laughing him off, a single black butterfly more commonly known to them as the 'jigokucho', fluttered into the room; soon after that, a voice was heard.

_"Attention all Divisions' Captains! Attention all Divisions' Captains! The Captain-Commander requires an immediate meeting. Please proceed to the meeting room as soon as possible!"_

"Right on time," Tachibana nodded she made her way out, "As your guest speaker, I must be there before you are."

"Tachibana…" Shuhei watched as she disappeared along with the butterfly; he turned to his Captain who nodded at him. "So it is happening… So what she has said is true - about the Dangai and all?"

"Yes, of course! She's not one who jokes about serious impending issues," said Captain Tosen.

Hitsugaya, too, nodded his head; "There's no choice," he said as he then turned to his lieutenant and she looked as serious as he expected her to be. "You heard the call, Matsumoto. Get us there."

"Yes, sir," said Rangiku eagerly before leading him out.

* * *

**A/N:**

_Hah. Finally. Anyways, just so everyone knows, there will L's appearance in here some time. Chapter Three will come out soon… I still have hype for Bleach and Death Note (as I have just finished the manga). By the way, please note the following:_

[1] I decided to use last name basis for Captains. Though I will use first name basis for others. It is a bit confusing to deal with this where conversations are concerned…  
[2] I had to establish the premise in which explains how L wound up being in Soul Society which is why I had to use the Hollows' appearance and all. I know some crossovers have already done this (perhaps even better than mine) but the thing is, criminals do wound up as Hollows (they even make up most of it). It is a promising and common premise.  
[3] Another premise I had to establish is the use of the Dangai. We all know that Aizen is no good man, so it's safe for all of you to assume he had everything to do with this issue. He did experiment with many things after all (as recent chapters have shown) and playing around with the Dangai sounds probable. Also, I know how souls travel are only known to shinigamis, but again, Aizen plays a big part in that Dangai issue.  
[4] On the other hand, please don't get confused with my character and Tachibana Mei from 'Say I Love You' manga. I searched up the net for the right name and the meaning of the name (if literally translated, I think) is _mandarin orange bright. _I just went with it, forgetting the other character from the manga. I liked the name and how it turned out so I'm not going to change it.

_Above all else, thanks for reading. I hope you all will continue to have interest and read it. :) _


	3. 3: Friendly Banter (Pt One)

**Detective Shinigami**

Three  
_Friendly Banter (Part One)_

All the Division Captains left their barracks and mobilized towards the First Division, where their Captain-Commander - Yamamoto Genryusai Shigekuni - await for their arrival. Their usual meeting room was a windowless and high-ceiling room with two large and wide door that came together with it; the Captain-Commander himself sat in the middle, where a seated perch readied itself for his seating. Many of the Captains have already showed up, each lining up into six line at one end and another at the other while their loyal lieutenants waited in a different hall outside. They kept their eyes on the floor, waiting as more had gathered; Captain Kuchiki Byakuya, a noble, was also present. So was Captain Kyuraku Shunsui, Kenpachi Zaraki, Unohana Retsu, Kurotsuchi Mayuri, Sousuke Aizen, Ichimaru Gin, Komamura Sajin, Tosen Kaname, Sui-Feng and of course, Hitsugaya Toshiro. Even Captain Ukitake Joshiro had shown up, despite his illness. Once all of them were accounted for, the door was shut closed and the meeting began.

Yamamoto was an old man with no hair on the top of his head and he had a very long eyebrows that fell down his face as well a mustache and beard that was tied up with a ribbon. He wore his Captain haori differently - it only rest on his bare shoulders like a drape. As the doors were shut close and all Captains from all twelve divisions had arrived, he took up his walking staff and tapped the floor. A secret door silently opened from the wall behind him and Tachibana slowly walked out; he then nodded at her with his eyes initially closed, but as soon as she stood by him, they were opened wide, signifying his full attention. He then quickly ran his fingers through his beard before he turned to the other Captains.

"This meeting now commences!" He gave a hollow shout. "Please, Tachibana, proceed to them what you have told me…"

The young lady responded with the slightest of nods - it was almost done by just a bat of her eyelashes; "Yes, sir," she returned and stared at each one of the Captains present, "Captains, firstly I would like to apologize for the abrupt nature of this meeting. This is an emergency and I will now brief you as to what's happened…

As of last night at twenty-three hundred hours and thirty-nine minutes, I stepped into the human world to study various things for my next article. Upon my arrival, I encountered a Body Reaper who appears to have shared its notebook with a human. It is without a doubt that this human have used its notebook for the massacre of many criminals in the Human World. At the same time, these criminals have created a sheer number of Hollows and there is also no doubt that if this continues, Hollows will be more than souls."

"So?" Sui-Feng interfered; she was the other female Captain present - wearing her simple uniform of the commander-in-chief of the Onmitsukido (Secret Tactics), which was under her haori - both are sleeveless, revealing her tan skin. Her hair was black in color and worn short with two long braids tied behind the back of her head, each with a white ribbon and ending in golden rings. As she moved slightly, her haori and hair flipped around; "I don't see why that's a bad thing! We'll just kill them off!"

Captain Kuchiki scoffed, "That's not true. One of my men has reported seeing the criminal's soul transforming into a Hollow. Depending on the criminal's exposure to this "Kira", the faster they can transform. From that I can surmise, the criminals' hollowfication are much quicker than usual because of their fear of "Kira's" judgement, which fills them with guilt. But it is also the sudden way that they die that aids to the transformation. Not only are they already evil, but the criminals do not regret anything that they do even up till their death… Besides, this "Kira" do not only kill those who do petty crimes, but also those who are on death row."

He was tall fellow, with shoulder length raven hair and dark platinum eyes; he had an heirloom of a scarf around his neck, worn together with the _kenseikan _hair clips from his noble family - one was on top of his head, holding his fringes into three locks, and another on the side, keeping it there. His poise and calmness was similar to that of Hitsugaya, but his was more adorned in his noble blood. It's no wonder Captain Kenpachi, who was brute looking with tan skin and long, spiky hair protruding at the back like a spinster looked very much out of place if directly compared.

"So what you're saying is that while he cleans up the Human World off thugs, he's filthied our world instead?" said Sui-Feng again.

"Something like that, yes."

Tachibana sheepishly nodded; "T-thank you, Captain Kuchiki. As you've already explained, the Hollows that exist rather recently are all the by products of "Kira's" false judgement and justice. Because of that, these criminals died unnaturally and untimely. This forces the hands of us shinigamis because at the increasingly rapid growth of hollows, the balance of the overall number if souls in Soul Society will also be forcing us to opt to genocide…"

"Don't be absurd, Tachibana! We all know we won't be driven to the edge by some unruly human! We won't be killing off anyone in Soul Society before their time just to ease the balance!" Argued Sui-Feng; she made a quick look over at Kurotsuchi before muttering under her breath, "Perhaps I was too quick to say that!"

True enough, the said Captain Mayuri Kurotsuchi drew a deep breath and sighed, alarming everyone in the room; "Actually," he chuckled darkly, "What Tachibana and I had been saying is merely estimates… until now. She has been assuming the criminals have been killed much too many and too quickly, hence breaking the balance. I assumed that once the balance is broken, the Hollows - if not destroyed immediately - will take over the population of souls by consuming them and Soul Society will slowly rot, because souls no longer enter it thereby deteriorating its reishi and reiryoku.

Now, if this is impossible for you to understand, take it this way: Soul Society and the Human World is part of one balanced habitat and ecosystem. Just like an ecosystem, there are energy, producers, consumers and decomposers. If souls are prey or producers to Hollows, then Hollows are consumers or predators. What decomposers are to consumers is what Shinigamis are to Hollows and souls. The energy in our ecosystem is of course the reishi and reiryoku of everyone and everything in the ecosystem. And just like the ecosystem, everything will be in ultimate chaos if the consumers are more than the producers and decomposers don't do their job of easing the cycle."

Truthfully, Kurotsuchi looked more menacing than Captain Komamura Sajin for some reason - the latter appeared animalistic as he took the appearance of that a large canine while Kurotsuchi was human but covered up in so thick a make-up that he was almost inhuman. Not to mention, his amber eyes gleamed with murderous intent and in such dark curiosity tingled with desire; his dark blue hair was covered by his strange head piece that look like a bended hammer head. This was accompanied by protruding decorative devices from his ears and chins, imitating that of a Pharaoh's. His face was painted with black and white that covered the right places - only his eyes and teeth were spared. Indeed, every time one looked at him will always be a first; even for Captain Sui-Feng herself.

"So you're saying that what Tachibana said is true?"

"Yes, of course it is! And what's happened to the Dangai is not only part of that imbalance, but I do suspect foul play. Tachibana's usual stakeout in human world is being taking advantage of, because clearly souls do not travel through the Dangai and Hollows are appearing more than usual last night - clearly Tachibana alone cannot handle the Hollows so she has taken the task to the deal with souls instead."

Tachibana sheepishly nodded, "Yes, Kurotsuchi-san. That's what I did… There is no other way for the souls to escape from the Dangai but through the usage of the _jigokucho _(Hells' Butterflies) and with the aid of Shinigamis. I - "

"Wait, what about the Kototsu?" Said Sui-Feng again, crossing her arms angrily.

Kurotsuchi sighed again, "As of last night, it's not there. Well, technically, it only appears once a week and last night was not it's schedule… hence it is as I expected. There is foul play in all of that and Tachibana is just one of the victim, if not a collateral."

"That may be true but," Tachibana but her lips as she continued, "Granted, Captain Sui-Feng and I never got along. So if you refuse to rescue me, it's fine. I'd rather die for saving souls and as part of a collateral rather than let Soul Society rot and die at the hands of our invisible enemies. But at this rate, there are too many souls trapped and therefore that by itself is detrimental to Soul Society. Hence…"

She suddenly faltered from her standing post and that startled all the Captains there; Hitsugaya was one to note that her reiatsu had been fading from since he entered the room. But his silent, compassionate thought was quickly dispersed with disgust when Captain Kenpachi laughed and scoffed all about it.

"I can't believe we're hearing this from a very weak person like her," he ended.

Kurotsuchi looked as much annoyed as Hitsugaya did; "At least she's got a bigger brain than you, Zaraki."

"Brains are nothin'! Body over matter, Mayuri."

"Please, bear with her for a moment," spoke the Captain-Commander this time, "Tachibana has no time left."

Just as he finished, the Captains were silenced and resumed their cool expression; at this sight Tachibana recovered and added, "T-thank you, Commander… As I was saying, it is only safer that you rescue these souls. But I have to say, in order for them to enter Soul Society, the Hollows currently existing in the Human World must also be destroyed simultaneously. This is Kurotsuchi-san's theory after all: that any imbalance must be corrected by restoring the balance that once were and to do that, we must do the corrections simultaneously in both Soul Society and - "

"The Human World," finished Kurotsuchi as he noticed that she started to shiver and tumbled over again; she remained fidgeting with both her legs on the ground.

Hitsugaya quickly jumped on his feet as he watched her clenching her fists to the floor; "What's happening? Why is her reiatsu fading?"

His question was met with mere silence; before long, the Captain-Commander sighed and nodded at Tachibana. He then said calmly, "You may now reveal yourself…"

Tachibana too nodded her head; slowly she disappeared into that of golden sand and it collected to form a figure much smaller, just like that of a child's. When finally all the the sand and dust had settled, a young boy with golden hair and unkempt long fringes over his deep blue eyes stared at all the Captains. He then sheepishly blushed and got up from the ground, returning to his original posture.

"You… W-who are you?" Said Hitsugaya.

Kurotsuchi's dark eyes gleamed as he rolled them to the boy and then sighed; "That's Tachibana's zanpakuto spirit… Masayume."

"Heh!" Chuckled Captain Kenpachi, "I thought there was an intruder in the meeting! I would've just killed you right then!"

Masayume shrugged with a sweat dropping from his brow, "Yes, well, I have been warned of your temper and violence, Captain Kenpachi. Anyways, my time is almost out. For now, I trust you will obey your Captain-Commander as I have obeyed Tachibana's request."

"Of course," nodded another fellow Captain, Unohana; compared to Sui-Feng, her sense of femininity was definitely more. Her long, waist-length hair was tied into a braid that covered her body from her neck down. Other than the soft way that she glowed, she wore the same uniform as everyone else. "We will decide and follow accordingly. Please, if it means that Tachibana needs her reiatsu, I suggest that you leave immediately… before anything else happens."

"That's right," the boy turned to the Captain-Commander and smiled, "I'll be going then…"

Before Hitsugaya or Sui-Feng could speak against it, the boy diminished once again into golden whirls of sand and made its way out of sight. All the Captains turned to each other, wondering what just happened, but Kurotsuchi was perhaps the only one who knew.

"Masayume has an ability to create clones with his sands. But judging from his reiatsu, Tachibana may well be in grave danger as well," he commented plainly.

Unohana agreed with him; "Yes, I believe she is. Didn't Tachibana said that Masayume has a way of _tranquilizing_ souls? Perhaps that's what she's doing in Dangai while we're here?"

"Highly likely," said Sousuke Aizen, "She's able to fill the air with drowsiness… as Masayume could turn into a tranquilizer and a probing tool since its sand based body allows it to enter the mind of its victim."

Captain Sousuke was the only Captain with glasses there; he had dark brown hair with fringes that hanged over his eyes, which was the same color, and a warm smile fashioned on his lips. The rest of his hair was slicked back from his forehead, showing his tidiness. He stood beside a fellow colleague called Ichimaru Gin, whose eyes also remained closed in a slanted position like that of a fox; his short silver hair was unkempt and covered his eyes with shadows, horrifying his strange smirk even more. The two were sometimes always seen together, but other times, it was rather normal to see Sousuke with his lieutenant - young Hinamori Momo.

Hitsugaya's ears suddenly pricked to that; "What does that mean? Were we tricked into believing it?"

"No, as its name suggest, Masayume is nothing but a _dream come true_. Its an illusion type, Hitsugaya-kun, among other things."

Captain Ichimaru Gin was naturally the only one laughing, "Let's hope for her sake that that wasn't a dream!"

"I can confirm it isn't, Ichimaru," said the Commander this time. "But let's put all of that aside. We must come to a solution to this problem."

Kyuraku raised his hands; as usual, he wore that silly looking straw hat over his long, wavy dark locks and unshaven face. His skin appeared darker than other parts as the hat's shadow, but besides that, he had darker skin than others. He also wore a pink and floral haori over his shoulders, just like Yamamoto did - except his was strangely… well, colorful.

"May I suggest that we go rescue her immediately?" He said gently with one of his flirtatious smirk, "Being a woman, it's not gentlemanly for us to abandon her after all her troubles to tell us what just happened."

"While I agree with rescuing her immediately, I also have issues to deal with like the Hollows appearance. Just as she and Captain Kurotsuchi has mentioned, it is detrimental to the restore the balance that corrections need to be established simultaneously in both the Human World and the Dangai," said their leader.

Kurotsuchi nodded, "While that is right, my way of dealing with this would be much easier and less troublesome. I say we'd abandon her anyway and kill off the Hollows. It saves the trouble of saving her!"

"But she is our ally!" said Captain Hitsugaya, almost in a hissing manner. "She may even gone through all the trouble just so you'd agree with rescuing her!"

"Ah, but it won't change my mind! I will still opt for the easiest option - no offense, Captain-Commander."

"None taken," replied the former rather indifferently; his eyes were shut tight, but his eyebrows showed slight discomfort, "I know very well what you would have wanted to do, but I have to admit, I do admire Tachibana's will to save those souls. After all, there has been deaths in Soul Society that amount to about the same souls that're trapped. So, if we allow her to die with them, we will allow our enemy to win."

"But what if this was a trap?" Sui-Feng interrupted, "I mean, there's no guarantee that there are no traps or tricks there in the Dangai, even if she went through that much trouble in telling us!"

"True, there is no guarantee indeed."

"Plus, this isn't about winning anything, now is it? This enemy of ours is all but confused: first to take advantage of Hollows' appearances and the many deaths here, and second, to utilize Tachibana."

"No, indeed not."

Suddenly, as the Captains silently thought of what Sui-Feng had argued, Captain Kuchiki cleared his throat and muttered, "All in all, I suggest we deploy immediately. Time is running out!"

"For what?" cooed Kurotsuchi in a rather musical tone.

"For _both _- to rescue Tachibana and purify the rest of the Hollows."

"Well, for troublesome matters - is what that is!" sighed Kurotsuchi, "Before the Captain-Commnader decides, I would like to opt out from the rescue mission. I have better things to do!"

"I agree! It's not a big deal to kill off Hollows anyway!" growled Sui-Feng as she uncrossed her arms.

"It _is_ a big deal, both of you!" said Hitsugaya anxiously, "We're not just talking about imbalance here! While Captain Tosen and I were at his division's editing office, Tachibana did personally mention that there is a Body Reaper involved!"

Some of the Captain let out a low gasp while most widened their eyes at the mention of the name; old Yamamoto himself had his eyes wide opened. They have all heard about Body Reapers but because those things normally work outside their line of sight and target, hearing their appearance was even more rare than the appearance of the Zero Division or Royal Guard. This successfully piqued their curiosity as the Captain-Commander then turned to Captain Tosen and creased his eyebrows.

"Is this true?"

Captain Tosen nodded. "Yes, her next article has a session in which she claims that a Body Reaper's notebook has been used to kill the criminals."

"Then that explains it," said Captain Kuchiki rather gladly, "It's no wonder the transformation took much faster."

"But how does a Body Reaper's notebook got anything to do with this? Body Reapers just kill with their own choice, never like this - are you sure that what Tachibana reports is true?" queried Kurotsuchi eagerly; his previous doubts seemed to have left his expression.

"You will have to ask her yourself. She came up to me to hand in her article but also to request a serial publication of it. It would appear that the notebook has been in the hands of a human and they've been calling him "Kira", but there was only one person who stood in his way: L. He was a detective responsible for solving many crimes worldwide, but as of last night, he was killed by a Body Reaper. Unfortunately, Tachibana - no, Masayume in her place - has only told me that much," finished Captain Tosen.

"Perhaps," Sousuke suddenly spoke as he cupped his chin, "She saw that this "Kira" and the Body Reaper business will be continue even after L's death?"

"Yes, I believe so. But I think we'll never know what really happened unless we rescue her."

Kurotsuchi stepped out from his line and raised his hand; "Alright, I say we rescue her!"

"Just a while ago, he has just refused it," sighed Hitsugaya as he shrugged his shoulders with annoyance.

The Captain-Commander turned his frown upside down and smiled instead; "Good! Kurotsuchi, Hitsugaya, Kuchiki and Sui-Feng will proceed with the rescue! As for Kenpachi, Sousuke, Ichimaru and Tosen - you all deal with the Hollows in the Human World. For medical attention and welcoming party, I leave it that to Unohana and Ukitake."

"Eh? What about me?" jumped Kyuraku in disappointment, "I was first to volunteer for rescue!"

"You will have to remain here along with the others as a back-up in case anything unprecedented happens! We will commence a second meeting on the Body Reaper once Tachibana has returned and recovered."

"But Captain-Commander!" bellowed Sui-Feng, stopping the old man at his tracks. "I wish not to join the rescue mission! Please reassign me!"

"No, Sui-Feng. Unfortunately, I think it's about time that you deal with this, therefore I cannot dismiss you from the rescue mission. I hope this mission will mend your relationship with Tachibana."

"Damn it!" Sui-Feng growled quietly as soon as their leader disappeared into a secret wall; she glanced over her shoulders and caught Hitsugaya staring at her. "What?"

"Why are you so emotional over Tachibana? She's been nothing but helpful so far!" He protested, ignoring the others as Kenpachi, Tosen, Ichimaru and Sousuke stepped out.

She scoffed a little as she looked away; "That woman and I just never saw eye to eye… that's all."

Before he could reply, she walked off right after Kurotsuchi and the rest, leaving Hitsugaya, Ukitake and Kuchiki behind.

"She's still not over it, is she?" Said Ukitake with a slight chuckle; this was met with a sudden cough. For one with such rare and kind expression, Ukitake was a handsome man with long silver hair and deep green eyes. He always wore a smile on his face, even in his condition.

Kuchiki remained poised with his usual calmness as he nodded; "I do suppose they say a woman's fury is worst than Hell's."

"Even so," said Hitsugaya as he wrapped his arms to his chest, "Whatever was the reason for their past squabble, she shouldn't be like that… We put our mission first before ourselves! I mean, what was it that happened between them that was so unbearable?"

"You don't know much, do you, Shiro-chan?" Giggled Ukitake, "Tachibana once challenged Sui-Feng on all-out investigative match - they were always arguing that a spy is better at observing than a journalist and they both wanted to prove each other wrong. I guess you could say that the battle was over and done with before the war could begin! That was how they never saw eye to eye to one another and Sui-Feng bore that grudge deep in her heart… I suppose it's the same for Tachibana - that's why she prefers to lock herself up in her room all day! That way Sui-Feng will never come between her investigations!"

* * *

**A/N:  
**_The actual chapter was so long I had to cut it in two parts! xD _

_Just in case no one knows, I based most of my fanfictions (if not all) on the original make of the fiction (i.e. Bleach and Death Note were originally mangas hence it's based on manga-verse while Devil May Cry was originally a game hence my fanfiction are based on that!) I also like my readers to feel like they're just started Bleach or something, that's why I describe how each of them look… _

_Anyway, I was kind of rushing so pardon me for any errors! Will fix it up later! _


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